2 elderly Diamond Princess passengers die in Japan

Deaths come after expert warned of poor contagion prevention measures

20200220 diamond princess 02

A second group of around 500 passengers is disembarking from the Diamond Princess on Thursday, following the 443 who left the ship Wednesday. © Kyodo

YOSUKE KURABE, Nikkei staff writer

TOKYO -- Two elderly passengers who had been on the Diamond Princess cruise ship docked in Yokohama have died, Japan's Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare said Thursday. The pair were a man and woman in their 80s and had been hospitalized.

They both passed away on Thursday morning, the ministry said. The man, who had an underlying illness, disembarked the ship and was hospitalized on Feb. 11 after coming down with a fever. He tested positive for the coronavirus on the next day.

Sponsored Content

About Sponsored ContentThis content was commissioned by Nikkei's Global Business Bureau.